A season of new plays and musicals are to get their world première as part of ‘Riverside Reads’, a series of read-through events at Riverside Studios on the first Tuesday of every month that will also be streamed live online to a global audience.
‘Riverside Reads’ will première scripts by blazingly talented writers, performed by stars from the West End and well-known TV dramas, and give theatregoers the unique experience of the excitement of a very first read-through. All - live and online - will be able to discuss the play with the playwright, actors, and director after the reading.
The first play, ‘The Last Broadcast’ by Carey Crim, on Tuesday, September 1, features Sandra Dickinson as a prominent barrier-breaking US talk radio personality, whose family come to realise that she needs to go into social care, leading to a shocking family secret being discovered. The first season of ‘Riverside Reads’ will end with a play-through of ‘StarBoy’, a dazzling new musical by West End legend Ray Shell and Christopher Van Cleave.
The first season of ‘Riverside Reads’ features three works by women and three by men, each focussing on family relationships. The season is curated and directed by Hugh Wooldridge, with legendary West End producer Sir Michael Codron as patron.
Each play or musical is rehearsed in advance and will be streamed live from one of the new spaces within the Riverside Studios complex. A limited number of tickets will be available to watch the reading live and in person, adhering to social distancing rules. Tickets cost from £15 to watch the play and the post-show discussion online (the stream is available for 28 days after purchase) and from £25 to watch in person at Riverside Studios.
The ‘Riverside Reads’ read-throughs will give paid work to more than 100 unemployed, freelance actors and musicians.
Hugh Wooldridge says: “The first read-through, with the cast and author, is one of the most exciting moments in the production process of a new play. This read-through is usually intensely personal and very private. A first reading - good or bad - can completely alter how a play is produced; many changes may be made because of it. I am excited to share an insight into what actually happens. And, given the current appalling state of affairs facing the theatre industry globally, I am so pleased that ‘Riverside Reads’ may be able to provide a platform for these exciting new plays and musicals, whilst bringing together many out-of-work freelance professionals from throughout the industry.”
Rachel Tackley, Creative Director of Riverside Studios says: “With the cinema, television studios, restaurants and bars open and already welcoming the public, it’s huge joy to bring theatre back to the heart of Riverside with ‘Riverside Reads’. As we emerge post the Covid-19 lockdown we have a responsibility to give voice new talent, and we’re delighted this season opens with four world premières. ‘Riverside Reads’ is the start of what will be a return to a full theatre programme, as restrictions are eased and we can explore the full potential of our new performance spaces.”
World Premiere #2 on Tuesday October 5, 2020 is ‘Scattered’ by Megan Van Dusen.
World Premiere #3 on Tuesday November 3, 2020 is ‘The In-Between’, a fantasy musical by Laura Tisdall.
World Premiere #4 on Tuesday February 2, 2021 be a first reading and play-through of ‘StarBoy’, a brilliant new musical by West End legend Ray Shell (original cast ‘Hair’, and creator of the roles of Rusty in ‘Starlight Express’ and Nomax in ‘Five Guys Named Moe’) and Christopher Van Cleave.
Play 1 - Livestreamed on Tuesday 1 September, 2pm BST
‘THE LAST BROADCAST’
By Carey Crim
When Caroline learns that her mother, a prominent barrier breaking talk radio personality, is no longer able to care for herself, she faces the difficult prospect of moving her into her own home, where life as a single mum is already a challenge. Her mother’s bombastic personality, the re-emergence of a former fling, and a long-buried family secret collide in this funny and heart-wrenching portrayal of a family in transition.
Cast: Sarah Alexander (Caroline Willis), Eleanor Crowe (Hannah Willis), Sandra Dickinson (Helen Bush), Patrick Robinson (Ian Carter) with Madeleine Gray (stage directions)
Directed by Hugh Wooldridge
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The cast of ‘The Last Broadcast’: Sarah Alexander, Eleanor Crowe, Sandra Dickinson and Patrick Robinson
Carey Crim is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. She received the 2017 Jane Chambers award for feminist playwriting and was a finalist for The 2018 O’Neill Conference. Crim is a resident artist at The Purple Rose Theater founded by Jeff Daniels. Her critically acclaimed play ‘Wake’ was adapted into a feature film starring Jo Koy, Myndy Crist and James Denton.
www.careycrim.com
Sarah Alexander’s TV credits include ‘Coupling’ as lead character Susan Walker, ‘Pennyworth’, ‘; The Worst Week of My Life”, ‘Armstrong & Miller’, ‘Smack the Pony’, and ‘Green Wing’. Her theatre credits include ‘A View from Islington North’ (Arts Theatre), ‘The Vagina Monologues’ (New Ambassadors Theatre) and ‘Hand in Hand’ (Hampstead Theatre).
Eleanor Crowe’s theatre credits include ‘The Ballad of The Cosmo Café’ (Insiders/Outsiders Festival) and ‘The Animals and Children Took To The Streets’ (Lyric Hammersmith).
Sandra Dickinson’s theatre credits include Eunice Hubbel and Blanche DuBois in in Sir Peter Hall’s production of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Mrs Bristol in ‘Not About Nightingales’ (National Theatre, and Circle in the Square, Broadway, directed by Sir Trevor Nunn), Beulah Binnings in ‘Orpheus Descending’ (Donmar Warehouse, directed by Sir Nicholas Hytner), ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ (London Palladium), and more recently Lucille Ball in ‘I Loved Lucy’ (Jermyn Street Theatre/Arts Theatre). Her TV credits include Trillian in the TV adaptation of ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’.
Madeleine Gray’s theatre credits include ‘Endless Second’ (Pleasance Courtyard, Theatre503), and ‘Timpson: The Musical’ (The King’s Head Theatre).
Patrick Robinson was most recently seen in the BBC’s Windrush scandal drama, ‘Sitting In Limbo’. He is best known on TV as series regular Ash in ‘Casualty’, as well as ‘Limbo’, ‘The Tempest’, ‘Mount Pleasant’, and ‘The Trouble with Maggie Cole’. His theatre credits include ‘The Seagull’ (Playhouse Theatre), ‘King Lear’ (Chichester Festival Theatre), ‘War House’; (New London Theatre), ‘Rough Crossings’ (Liverpool Playhouse) and ‘Festen’ (Almeida/ Lyric).
All artists appear subject to their professional commitments
Hugh Wooldridge (‘Riverside Reads’ Director and Curator)
Hugh Wooldridge trained at LAMDA, and has been resident director at The Haymarket Theatre, Leicester, The Thorndike Theatre, Leatherhead and The Old Vic Theatre, London. He has directed premières of plays and musicals by Alan Ayckbourn, Howard Barker, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black, Richard Crane, Daphne du Maurier, Athol Fugard, Tim Rice, Andrew Lloyd Webber and TS Eliot, Pam Gems, Bryony Lavery, William Mastrosimone, Denis McIntyre, David Wood and Francis Wyndham. Wooldridge has also written ‘Heads Up!’, a comedy with music about a girl band with Nicholas Bromley; and ‘The Ghost And Mrs Muir’, a musical with Scott de Turk and Bill Francoeur. An Emmy Award-winner, he has been the Beatrice Carr and Ray Wallace Visiting Professor at the A. Max Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts based at the University of Oklahoma.
www.hughwooldridge.com
Sir Michael Codron CBE (‘Riverside Reads’ Patron)
Sir Michael Codron is the legendary British theatre producer known for his first productions of the early works of, amongst others, Alan Ayckbourn, Christopher Hampton, David Hare, Harold Pinter, Joe Orton, Michael Frayn, Patrick Marber, Simon Gray, Tom Stoppard, Victoria Wood. He has been honoured with a Laurence Olivier Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios believe that the arts have the power to change lives. As the place where art and community meet in West London, we create opportunities for people to have extraordinary experiences, to engage and to discover. We want to make a difference.
Riverside Studios has a long legacy and reputation as a boundary-pushing home for the arts and creative expression. This dynamic cultural venue is home to a confluence of theatre, film, music, dance, comedy, visual art, enterprise, innovative technology, events and hospitality – a constant stream of inspiration where creativity and community flow.
For over 40 years, Riverside Studios has brought the world to West London with a programme of theatre, dance, television, comedy and music. Some of the unforgettable figures who have appeared at Riverside include Samuel Beckett, Helen Mirren, Tadeusz Kantor, Yoko Ono, David Bowie, Amy Winehouse, Ant and Dec, Benjamin Zephaniah, Robert Lepage, Allen Ginsberg, Margaret Atwood, Lenny Henry and Michael Clark.
Riverside Trust is a charity, aiming to present high-quality arts that are accessible to all.
www.riversidestudios.co.uk/
’Riverside Reads’
‘The Last Broadcast’
by Carey Crim
Tuesday September 1, 2020
2.00pm
Play and post-show discussion (latest end at 6.00pm)
Tickets:
£15 online, stream is available for 28 days after purchase
£25 socially distanced seating at Riverside Studios
‘Scattered’
by Megan Van Dusen
Tuesday October 5, 2020
2.00pm
Play and post-show discussion (latest end at 6.00pm)
Tickets:
£15 online, stream is available for 28 days after purchase
£25 socially distanced seating at Riverside Studios
‘The In-Between’
a fantasy musical by Laura Tisdall
Tuesday November 3, 2020
2.00pm
Play and post-show discussion (latest end at 6.00pm)
Tickets:
£20 online, stream is available for 28 days after purchase
£30 socially distanced seating at Riverside Studios
‘StarBoy’
a new musical by Ray Shell and Christopher Van Cleave
Tuesday February 2, 2021
2.00pm
Play and post-show discussion (latest end at 6.00pm)
Tickets:
£20 online, stream is available for 28 days after purchase
£30 socially distanced seating at Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios
101 Queen Caroline Street, Hammersmith,
London W6 9BN
Box Office: 020 8237 1010
https://www.riversidestudios.co.uk/
Building and Box Office are open from Monday – Sunday
The Bakery Opening Times: Monday - Saturday 9:00 - 16:00
Box Office Opening Hours: Monday – Sunday 10:00 – 22:00
Twitter: @RiversideLondon
